Page 83 - Hereford Magazine 2022

Hereford heifers make their mark for Waikato finisher

Hereford heifers

make their mark for Waikato finisher

Hereford Prime finisher Lyn Comins, pictured with son-in-law and stock agent Stephen Weck, loves the quietness of her first-cross Hereford heifers.

Words: Natalie Campbell. Photos: Kelly Comins. many of the herds to use over their cows, so he’s familiar with
the sire genetics as well.
irst-cross Herefords are the preference for Te “I try and select the best bulls I can for the herds I buy
Awamutu Hereford Prime finisher Lyn Comins, weaners from. The calves come from good bulls and good cow
who has been loyally supplying the programme for herds. I’m also selective in the weaners I choose for finishing.”
more than a decade. Stephen, who owns Stephen Weck Livestock, says he looks
F Lyn farms a finishing block southeast of Te for structurally sound calves, with a good frame and well-
Awamutu and finishes 85 Hereford Friesian-cross heifers each marked calves.
year, with most being put into the Hereford Prime programme “I have regular farmers I buy weaners from, and those
at Magills Artisan Butchery. calves come from very good, well-established herds.”
She says supplying Magills means she can supply a local The heifers are purchased as weaners, arriving on the Comins’
business that produces a great product with cattle she enjoys property in late spring, with most being carried through for
farming. finishing and supplying to Magills for Hereford Prime.
“I’ve always enjoyed Herefords. We used to own a dairy farm Stephen introduced her to Magills and supplying the
and we ran Hereford bulls over the cows and reared the calves. programme. He says that came about after he went to buy
“Herefords are very quiet and we have no problems with some meat from the Magills Te Awamutu store – he and
them. I’ve always loved them and they’re also beautiful to look Magills’ owner Mike van der Hoeven got on well and the
at out in the paddock.” supply of heifers for Hereford Prime developed from there.
Lyn, with husband Graeme, chooses to finish heifers because “I pride myself on what I do and know how to pick a good
she finds them easy to handle and placid. heifer and I like to supply quality animals for the programme.”
“The cattle are my project and Graeme helps me out with Lyn agrees and says supplying Magills is easy. “We like to
chores and tractor driving.” supply Magills, they are good to deal with and they produce
Independent stock agent (and also Lyn’s son-in-law) Stephen great beef.”
Weck sources the heifers for Lyn. The key to successful finishing is keeping the cattle well
Stephen has decades of experience, in particular sourcing fed, says Lyn. Her heifers are finished on grass and receive
weaner heifers for finishing. homegrown high-quality silage during winter to top them up.
He says he likes to know a bit of the history of the herd the “We make a lot of wrapped silage on-farm, and they get that
calves are from, and he also helps source Hereford bulls for throughout winter. The heifers are fully fed all the time on

Year 2022 HEREFORD MAGAZINE 81